Where should we move to? (Long)

[ElRay]

Well, here's an update (We don't travel as much with an 8 month old as we used to):

SWMBO's parents moved to Louisville, KY. We've been down there a couple of times. Seems to be big without being too big. There was a surprisingly good mix of people and plenty of 5-10 acres lots/farmettes available not too far out. Reasonable close to the Red River Gorge, New River and Seneca Rocks. Any feedback from folks that have spent more time down there?

Ray

[stewchi]

I will go way out in left field and say move to Ireland (Fast growing IT) and the attitudes are among the best I have ever been to.
Beyond that I would recommend staying close to your roots. I have found most cultures different from how you were raised will annoy you eventually. My last few moves were from Mobile AL to Tucson AZ to Europe (Luxembourg) to St Charles IL. There are things I like and dislike about all of them and the attitude of each are certainly unique. When I left Tucson I was ready to move (I had also lived in PHX for 5 years) I was tired of the AZ attitude (hard to describe) but very independent do my own thing type attitude. I got a little tired of the French, and Belgians, and a lesser extent the Germans. Mobile I found more tolerable than Huntsville (went to HS there) but AL has definite opinions on how people should live their lives. We really like St Charles so far and find Midwesterners very friendly and generally like the helpful neighbor type attitude of our little town. But coming from a southern background its more inline with my roots than AZ, Philly, Boston or Pittsburgh (other places I lived)
We are thinking about moving Chattanooga (went to grade school there plus some summer intern jobs during college), most exposed rock east of the Mississippi, lots of outdoor activities and closer to Atlanta and Knoxville then Rockford is to Chicago (At least in CHI traffic) but I don’t recommend the south for everyone we like to keep it to ourselves takes a special kind of person to really appreciate it. My family is born and raised in Louisiana for several generations and if that state ever go its act together I would love to live.

[kenshep]

quote:Originally posted by Scottydont

Wow, what a mouthful. Seattle and Portland sounds like it would fit your bill pretty well.

I agree Portland and Seattle are nice, but I suggest west of the cascades there are really only three seasons. Every 4 or 5 years you'll get a week or two in the 30s in the winter time otherwise is weather in the 40s and 50s winter?
I would move to Bend, Oregon tomorrow if they had an airport that would take commercial jets.
I lived in Boise for a couple of years. Pretty homogenous population, but great skiing 30 minutes from down town and miles of mountains for hiking, biking, etc.
I've heard could things about Truckee, CA, but know nothing of it. That would put you driving distance to Sacramento too if you are into State and Local support. You've got the tax **** issue with CA though. All those companies moving to the Rocky Mtn states left for some reason.
I also like the Ashland/Medford Oregon area. You've got the Shakespearean festival there 6 or 7 months out of the year. Great skiing on Mt. Ashland and it's not to far to Shasta or the coast. Not sure how big of plane can land there. Trump landed his 737 there scouting sw Oregon coastal property. Great hiking, fishing, etc. Still would argue it may be 3 seasons vs four in western Oregon. You can be at high elevation very quickly if you want to freeze you extremities. Southern Oregon University is there.
I lived in OMYGOD Nebraska for a year. People were great, the wind in the winter sucked and it was flat and ridiculously hot and humid in summer.
Virginia's nice, Richmond's airport isn't bad. Northern, VA is too crowded and expensive. The fount of money flowing out of the federal government makes work easy to come by.
So if I like the mountains why do I live in FL? LOML wants to.
I'm easy.

[Mainemarc]

Hi ElRay:

I'd like to suggest my humble city of Portland, Maine. Now before you say "Yes, but bad winters just like Burlington, VT" let me say that being on the coast moderates the weather here considerably.

I feel qualified to make this comparison for your benefit seeing how I grew up where you used to live: in the North Country. I'm from Canton so I know all about winters in St. Lawrence County. My dad was a professor at SLU. Winters are quite real in Portland (we currently have about 2' on the ground), but are generally much milder than St. Lawrence County.

Portland is a lovely city with a burgeoning immigrant population from East Africa and Southeast Asia, so there's a lot more diversity than even five years ago. Good Pad Thai is easy to find. I do confess I'm currently looking for another decent Mexican restaurant. We had a couple a recently, but they folded. Actually the restaurant scene in Portland is a little like our weather: if you don't like it, wait 15 minutes. We have an extremely high number of restaurants per capita, some say as high as San Francisco, although I'm not sure about that. I think the ratio we compete with San Fran on is attorneys per capita.

We have a professional hockey team and (my personal favorite) our lovable Sea Dogs minor league baseball team in a cozy brick ball park, where GA tickest are $6.50 a pop, they serve great Shipyard Ale, and there absolutely isn't a bad seat in the house.

Portland has a thriving historic shopping district: the Old Port with great eateries and even better microbreweries. We have the Portland Symphony Orchestra, a few small stage companies, and a number of small and one medium-sized concert venue. There are a number of schools in the area, University of Southern Maine, University of Maine School of Law (might have something to do with that above-mentioned dubious honor), University of New England, Bowdoin College just up the road in Brunswick, Bates College in Lewiston and Colby College in Waterville.

We've got the lovely Calendar Islands right here in Casco Bay (great sea kayaking, especially along the Maine Coast Trail). There are numerous, groovy, quirky places like Belfast, Rockport (home of Outward Bound) and Bar Harbor along our mid-coast and Down East. Then we've got Baxter State Park featuring Mt. Katahdin with it's impressive Knife's Edge, in my opinion the finest alpine cirque walk east of the Mississippi. Plenty more hiking and climbing throughout the Northeastern terminous of the White Mountains that advance across our western border from New Hampshire.

Rock climbing opportunities are reasonably plentify in Maine and in the Whites (although I confess nothing like the 'Gunks). We have an indoor rock gym here in Portland and MOAC (Maine Outdoor Adventure Club) has a rock climbing contingent.

We have a small, regional airport with jet service to major cities, and Boston is about a 2 hour drive south on the turnpike. Or take the train to Boston and points south.

Cost of living here in Greater Portland is definitely on the rise, much higher than St. Lawrence County (what place isn't?) but cheaper than SoCal and you don't have to go far beyond the city to find affordable land. Head up North and land gets really cheap.

Just to be fair, the only other community that has ever really tempted me like Portland is Flagstaff, AZ. Smaller, but interesting and it reminds me of what I imagine Boulder was like about 30 years ago.

[ElRay]

quote:Originally posted by Mainemarc

I'd like to suggest my humble city of Portland, Maine. Now before you say "Yes, but bad winters just like Burlington, VT" let me say that being on the coast moderates the weather here considerably.

Hey, I never thought the winters were bad. The ones here are worse because it doesn't stay as cold, so things warm-up enough to just melt. It feels like the humidity is close to 100% all winter. Plus it stays overcast a lot (kind of like SoCal's Marine Layer). I'm used to total cloud cover only when it's about to snow/rain or it just finished. Unfortunately, that's what I remember about Maine. Was I just there at bad times? We miss those clear snowy days where you need sunglasses more than you do in the summer and those nights when it's dry and clear with a full moon and almost as bright as a regular day.

quote:I feel qualified to make this comparison for your benefit seeing how I grew up where you used to live: in the North Country. I'm from Canton so I know all about winters in St. Lawrence County. My dad was a professor at SLU.

I snooped at your profile. It looks like you were a Junior or a Senior in high school when we moved up there (middle of seventh grade for me).

quote:Portland is a lovely city with a burgeoning immigrant population from East Africa and Southeast Asia, so there's a lot more diversity than even five years ago. Good Pad Thai is easy to find. I do confess I'm currently looking for another decent Mexican restaurant.

Since living in SoCal, I've been spoiled and am hard pressed to find a good one too.

quote:We had a couple a recently, but they folded.

Probably because they were too authentic.

quote:Actually the restaurant scene in Portland is a little like our weather: if you don't like it, wait 15 minutes.

Sounds like Wisconsin in that regard (which is not a bad thing).

quote:We've got the lovely Calendar Islands right here in Casco Bay (great sea kayaking, especially along the Maine Coast Trail).

I have been looking for an excuse to build a kayak ...

quote:There are numerous, groovy, quirky places ...

That's something we need.

quote:Cost of living here in Greater Portland is definitely on the rise, much higher than St. Lawrence County (what place isn't?)

Tell me about it. My folks sold 295 acres for $70k and still made a decent profit. We're just looking for something big enough to have a house, a shop (eventually), a greenhouse (eventually), a small (OK, probably big to some) garden and (hopfully) no neighbors in direct sight. A good hill, stream, pond and easy access to trails from the house wouldn't hurt either.

Some more questions for you:

• How bad is what we called the North Country Attitude (you're not a local until you've got six generations in the local cemetary)?
• Do you get a lot of days where there's no precipitation, but it's not sunny either? That's one of the things that bugged us about SoCal and definitely starts to wear on us here during the winter.
• How's the humidity? I really remember things being damp and too "maritime". But I haven't been out there since the 80's, so I can easily be mis-remembering.

Ray

[ElRay]

quote:Originally posted by kenshep

quote:Originally posted by Scottydont

Wow, what a mouthful. Seattle and Portland sounds like it would fit your bill pretty well.

I agree Portland and Seattle are nice, but I suggest west of the cascades there are really only three seasons. Every 4 or 5 years you'll get a week or two in the 30s in the winter time otherwise is weather in the 40s and 50s winter?

Everytime I've been out that way, it's been far too overcast. But then, I've got bad luck with the weather. The last time I was in Joshua Tree over Thanksgiving was the first time they had snow in eleven years.

quote:I've heard could things about Truckee, CA, but know nothing of it. That would put you driving distance to Sacramento too if you are into State and Local support.

There's appeal, but that areas gotten so crowded with tourist traffic. I'd be tempted to work Thurs-Mon and take my weekends in the middle of the week.

quote:You've got the tax **** issue with CA though.

True. That's one of the reasons why The Needles/Domelands/Kern River Valley isn't a slam dunk.

quote:I also like the Ashland/Medford Oregon area.

I really want to like Oregon and I feel bad for not liking it more. There's as a bit too much of the California-style Social Engineering politics up there too. But again, I'm more familiar with Portland and Eugene, so I might be seeing a different sub section of the state.

quote:Northern, VA is too crowded and expensive. The fount of money flowing out of the federal government makes work easy to come by.

I hate to say it, but that's one area on my avoid list. Taxes and property values are nearly insane and all the time I've spent in the Baltimore/DC area give me enough familiarity with the area that I know I wouldn't be happy there. Baltimore wouldn't be too bad, but Virginia just isn't appealing.

Ray

[ElRay]

quote:Originally posted by stewchi

I will go way out in left field and say move to Ireland (Fast growing IT) and the attitudes are among the best I have ever been to.

We have thought of New Zealand, but the grandparents (our parents) would kill us.

quote:Beyond that I would recommend staying close to your roots. I have found most cultures different from how you were raised will annoy you eventually.

We're doomed then. Both of us have lived so many places that no matter where we are, something will annoy us, we'll really miss something else, etc.. What we really need is someplace that maximizes what we want for our daughter and minimizes what we'd like to avoid.

quote: My last few moves were from Mobile AL to Tucson AZ to Europe (Luxembourg) to St Charles IL. There are things I like and dislike about all of them and the attitude of each are certainly unique.

No doubt about that. Our first stop in IL was Naperville. We were there for about two years, but the traffic, the home prices, tiny lots and the flatness finally got to us. That area's great for a lot of folks, but just wasn't our cup of tea. We like to visit our friends down that way, but really couldn't live there. It was getting to be too much like what we were trying to leave behind in SoCal.

quote:When I left Tucson I was ready to move

I felt the same about Baltimore. I truly loved it, but it was just time to move on.

quote:We are thinking about moving Chattanooga (went to grade school there plus some summer intern jobs during college), most exposed rock east of the Mississippi, lots of outdoor activities

Oh there's an appeal, but I'm afraid of it being too southern for a New England Yankee at heart and I know I will miss my Falls and Winters.

quote:My family is born and raised in Louisiana for several generations and if that state ever go its act together I would love to live.

The wife's family hails from there (Her great-great-(maybe there's one more in there)-grandmother was living there when it was still owned by the French.) and there's a lot to like, but unfortunately there's a lot to not like. You would think racism wouldn't be so bad in an area where so many people come from a tremendously mixed background.

Ray

[ElRay]

Well, it's time to dust off this thread -- The search continues. Anybody familiar with Ashville or Durham, NC? They're looking to have a lot of what we want: Four season activity, rock climbing, mountain biking, etc. The schools seem good around Durham, and seem like they should be in Ashville (three colleges in town). The cost of living is about the same as it is here. Durhan seems pretty integrated, but we have no clue about Ashville.

Ray

[Stan]

We have anyone here that lives in the Mt. Sterling (Montgomery, Bourbon or Bath county) Kentucky area? If so, could you give us a description of the area, climate, etc?

Thanks.

[crokett]

I live west of Durham. There are much better places than Durham to live in this area. Durham has a higher crime rate, taxes and is probably the least-well managed city in the Triangle.

I live about 1/2hr west of the RTP - easy drive on the interstate - and have a lot lower cost of living, nor do I have to put up with the traffic. If you want the suburbs, east of Durham into Raleigh and Wake County is where you want to look. However, it is farther from Asheville and the rock climbing you want to do.

For schools, I'd put Wake County (Raleigh/Cary) first, then Chapel Hill City Schools, then Durham/Orange County tied. Durham County schools are a bit better but are not managed nearly as well. Orange county schools are also safer and cheaper.

[pierhogunn]

stay out of charlotte, anything surrounding is good... harrisburg, nc

dan robinson

[chriscombs]

Ray,
If you like Boulder, you should check out Colorado Springs. We have a pretty good IT community here and there is really a lot to do. Plus its about the same distance to Denver as Boulder is so you get big city things as well. I have been here for about twenty years and cant think of anywhere else id like to be. If you have any questions feel free to email me.
Chris

[ElRay]

quote:Originally posted by crokett

I live west of Durham. There are much better places than Durham to live in this area. Durham has a higher crime rate, taxes and is probably the least-well managed city in the Triangle.

It seems like you're saying, "Go West young man!" That's the kind of info we're looking for -- Stuff you can't divine unless you've lived there for a while.

quote:If you want the suburbs, east of Durham into Raleigh and Wake County is where you want to look. However, it is farther from Asheville and the rock climbing you want to do.

We're not really looking for Suburbia -- That's where we are now. Ideally, we'd like to be as remote as possible without feeling cut-off. As long as I'm within a couple hours of an airport big enough for 7#7 and MD-80's (no turboprop, excuse me, "How much do you weigh?", punch numbers on the calculator, move bags from the tail to the nose sized planes) and I can get reasonably priced broadband at a reasonable speed, I'm golden. Good schools is the only other "hard" requirement.

quote:For schools, I'd put Wake County (Raleigh/Cary) first, then Chapel Hill City Schools, then Durham/Orange County tied. Durham County schools are a bit better but are not managed nearly as well. Orange county schools are also safer and cheaper.

I'm going to have to see where these are on the map. I kind of have an idea about where you're talking about.

How's the humidity in that part of the state? That's part of the reason we're leaning to something more towards the Appalachians, something at a higher elevation.

After doing more digging, I think something that's a pre-suburb of Ashville might be more in line with what we're looking for. It looks like you can still get 3-5 acre parcels out there. Also, Ashville seems fairly "cosmopolitan" or "sophisticated" (for lack of better labels). Any experience out that way? I know a friend of my folks is from that area, loves it, and will move back as soon as she retires. But other than that, all I have is from Google.

Ray

[ElRay]

quote:Originally posted by chriscombs

... you should check out Colorado Springs.

Man, it's been a long time since I've been out there. Do the Royal Fork restaurants still exist? They were a "high end all you can eat buffet" (I know, a bit of an oxymoron) and being part of a pack of teenagers, they were a favorite stop.

quote:If you have any questions feel free to email me.

There's a lot we like out that way. We definitely have a UT/CO/NM trip on the list.

Ray

[pierhogunn]

you can check out Morganton NC, enough ammenities to keep you happy, nice little community, vibrant down-town, with enough land in the boonies ( atually not that far from Boone, NC) you can loose yourself in places to the west of Morganton, specifically a place called Jonas Ridge, just make sure you get a 4x4...

Dan